Croatian oil pipeline operator JANAF has finalized an oil transport agreement with Croatian oil company INA and its majority owner, Hungarian MOL, for 2025.
Under the contract, valid through the end of 2025, MOL will be able to transport 2.1 million tons of crude oil via JANAF’s pipeline network and store oil at the Omišalj and Sisak terminals until the end of 2027. This volume is largely unchanged from last year’s deal, which covered 2.2 million tons.
For INA, the agreement is more substantial, allowing the company to transport 7.2 million tons of crude oil to the Rijeka refinery by the end of 2025. Additionally, crude oil storage in Omišalj is secured from 1 April through December 2025. INA’s financial report revealed that the company transported 2.2 million tons of crude oil last year.
JANAF has been supplying MOL for the past 13 years, delivering crude oil to two refineries: Százhalombatta near Budapest, with an annual capacity of 8.1 million tons, and the Bratislava refinery in Slovakia, which processes 6 million tons annually.
MOL Group acknowledged the agreement but expressed disappointment over securing only a short-term deal at rates significantly higher than European transport tariffs. The company stressed that a long-term contract would have ensured more stability for regional energy security. Additionally, MOL warned that the high transportation costs could drive up energy prices, while also emphasizing the importance of ongoing improvements to JANAF’s infrastructure to support steady and large-scale crude deliveries.
MOL highlighted the necessity of maintaining multiple transport options to safeguard energy security for landlocked countries like the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary. Despite concerns, they stated that signing the contract was the only viable option to ensure a stable oil supply for the region.
Meanwhile, JANAF’s management announced that the company has been granted a 30-day license to continue transporting oil for the Serbian Pančevo refinery, owned by NIS.
